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Cousin Bette
- Narrated by: Johanna Ward
- Length: 16 hrs and 25 mins
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Great compassion
- By nina lalumia on 12-26-16
By: George Eliot
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Sentimental Education
- By: Gustave Flaubert
- Narrated by: Michael Maloney
- Length: 15 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Frederic Moreau is a law student returning home to Normandy from Paris when he first notices Mme Arnoux, a slender, dark woman several years older than himself. It is the beginning of an infatuation that will last a lifetime. He befriends her husband, an influential businessman, and their paths cross and re-cross over the years. Through financial upheaval, political turmoil, and countless affairs, Mme Arnoux remains the constant, unattainable love of Moreau’s life.
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When Crimes of Passion Were All the Fashion
- By W Perry Hall on 03-12-17
By: Gustave Flaubert
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The American
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Adam Sims
- Length: 14 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Self-made American millionaire Christopher Newman arrives in Paris brimming with hope and optimism, excited to experience the culture and, hopefully, find the perfect woman to become his wife. After a chance encounter with American expatriate friends, his attention is drawn to Madame de Cintré, 25-year-old widowed daughter of the late Marquis de Bellegarde. Having fallen on hard times, the centuries-old aristocratic family permits Newman's courtship to proceed; however, they later persuade the widow to break off her engagement to the nouveau-riche businessman.
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excellent reading
- By Andorboth on 12-03-22
By: Henry James
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The Age of Innocence
- By: Edith Wharton
- Narrated by: David Horovitch
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Countess Ellen Olenska, separated from her European husband, returns to old New York society. She bears with her an independence and an awareness of life which stirs the educated sensitivity of the charming Newland Archer, engaged to be married to her cousin, May Welland. Though he accepts the society's standards and rules he is acutely aware of their limitations. He knows May will assure him a conventional future but Ellen, scandalously separated from her husband, forces Archer to question his values and beliefs.
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Narrated to Perfection
- By Ilana on 09-18-12
By: Edith Wharton
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Nicholas Nickleby
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 31 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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The most gorgeously theatrical of all Dickens's novels, Nicholas Nickleby follows the delightful adventures of a hearty young hero in 19th-century England. Nicholas, a gentleman's son fallen upon hard times, must set out to make his way in the world. His journey is accompanied by some of the most swaggering scoundrels and unforgettable eccentrics in Dickens's pantheon.
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Amazing
- By Terie on 07-12-07
By: Charles Dickens
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The Red and the Black
- By: Stendhal
- Narrated by: Davina Porter
- Length: 20 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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So what would Al Gore choose if he had a book club? Gore named Stendhal's The Red and the Black, a 19th century classic chock full of adultery, betrayal, and moral vacuity, as his favorite book on a recent broadcast of Oprah. It's a bit shocking of a choice, given his wife and running mate's position on clean, wholesome literature. Listen and decide for yourself the merit of this presidential pick.
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Almost perfect
- By Erez on 05-29-08
By: Stendhal
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My Lady Ludlow
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Susannah York
- Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Lady Ludlow's appalling snobbery, prejudice and bred-in-the-bone conviction as to the superiority of the English aristocracy and their feudal way of life are deliciously tested, and found wanting, in this gently radical tale of the collapse of a social system. Elizabeth Gaskell's My Lady Ludlow is a brilliant picture of the shift in power in a rural northern village, from the velvety feudal Ludlows to the glitter of the new money rattling through the system courtesy of the brazen baker from Birmingham.
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A treat
- By Tad Davis on 03-04-20
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Where Angels Fear to Tread
- Penguin English Library
- By: E. M. Forster
- Narrated by: Stephen Fry
- Length: 2 hrs and 51 mins
- Abridged
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E. M. Forster's first novel is a witty comedy of manners that is tinged with tragedy. It tells the story of Lilia Herriton, who proves to be an embarrassment to her late husband's family as, in the small Tuscan town of Monteriano, she begins a relationship with a much younger Italian man - classless, uncouth, and highly unsuitable. A subtle attack on Edwardian values and a humanely sympathetic portrayal of the clash of two cultures, Where Angels Fear to Tread is also a profound exploration of character and virtue.
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Stephen Fry + E.M. Forster = Audio Kismet
- By Megasaurus on 08-20-12
By: E. M. Forster
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Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas
- A Novel
- By: Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Jull Costa Margaret - translator, Robin Patterson - translator
- Narrated by: Ramon De Ocampo
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Machado de Assis’ classic novel, the precursor of Latin American fiction, is finally rendered as a stunningly relevant work for 21st-century audiences. In eloquent, contemporary prose, Costa and Patterson breathe new life into the dynamic character of Brás Cubas and reveal the vivid, tempestuous Rio de Janeiro of his time. The recently deceased Cubas narrates his life story, admitting glibly: “I am not so much a writer who has died, as a dead man who has decided to write.”
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Incredible story from an incredible author
- By Anonymous User on 01-01-21
By: Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, and others
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El conde de Montecristo [The Count of Monte Cristo]
- By: Alejandro Dumas
- Narrated by: Joan M Martinez
- Length: 46 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Ésta es sin duda, la novela de aventuras más famosa de la historia de la literatura. El joven Edmundo Dantés llega al puerto de Marsella, feliz por poder ver a Mercedes, de la que está enamorado. Pero otros pretendientes de Mercedes, van a hacerle la vida imposible, consiguiendo que el mismo día de la boda sea detenido, acusado de traición al rey y enviado directamente a la terrible prisión del castillo de If.
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Qué bonita historia y que gran narración.
- By Luis Enrique Cuevas Hernández on 02-14-21
By: Alejandro Dumas
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"The possession of power, no matter how enormous, does not bring the knowledge how to use it." Raphael, a failed writer, deep in debt, and unrequited in love, is about to take a suicidal plunge into the Seine River. Just in time, he discovers the "Magic Skin" in an antiquity shop. Its supernatural powers grant every wish but it extracts a terrible toll! This parable depicts the malaise of 19th century France.
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poor reading
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This is the story of an artist who was willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of art. In much of its general outline, this famous novel follows the life of Paul Gauguin, famous French post-impressionist painter, but it is not a novelized biography of Gauguin. Rather it is a sharply-delineated, carefully wrought "private life", written by one of the most vivid and penetrating contemporary literary masters.
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great, simply great
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Nella Germania devastata alla fine della Seconda guerra mondiale, il professor Serenus Zeitblom scrive la biografia dell'amico d'infanzia Adrian Leverkühn, un geniale musicista che in cambio dell'anima ha ottenuto dal diavolo ventiquattro anni di furore creativo. Reinterpretando in chiave moderna il mito di Faust, Thomas Mann narra una vicenda che per molti aspetti sembra anticipare il destino della Germania, travolta dalla follia hitleriana e dalla distruzione.
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Lord Jim
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From his many years on the high seas as a mariner, mate, and captain, Joseph Conrad created unique works, including Heart of Darkness, that have left an indelible mark on world literature. First published in 1899, his haunting novel Lord Jim is both a riveting sea adventure and a fascinating portrait of a unique outcast from civilization.
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The exact description of the form of a cloud
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What listeners say about Cousin Bette
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Alla
- 09-10-12
Doing justice to Balzac
Johanna Ward reads this book beautifully! She clearly has excellent control of both French and English and it shows! Thanks!
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3 people found this helpful
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- Nena
- 09-03-22
a bit sad
I wanted to read this book because I loved the movie. I am sorely disappointed.
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- Janey
- 12-19-11
Great story!
Would you listen to Cousin Bette again? Why?
I did listen twice because I could not keep the characters apart and the reader didn't change her voice enough to help me remember individual characters. After I got past that it was easier to listen to.
Who was your favorite character and why?
Actually, none of them since none were able to see their own problems let alone do anything about them.
Did the narration match the pace of the story?
In the beginning it was difficult to keep the characters apart.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No, not possible.
Any additional comments?
I was a lot like a modern day soap opera.
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2 people found this helpful
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- leo
- 06-18-21
Great story and fine performance, bravo!
The storyline is very witty, and insightful to human nature, respectfully performed by a great artist.
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- Kindle Customer
- 01-11-15
Thoroughly enjoyable
Great story that feels immediate, even though the world has changed. People always want more sex, security and power. Universal.
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3 people found this helpful
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- George
- 09-06-20
Classic, Poetic and Funny
It never fails me how even translated from French this. book flows poetically. The twists and turns of this story keep the reader on his toes. Another great narrator also.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Beatriz Silva
- 02-17-21
Una Joya
Por algo Balzac es un clásico, este libro es un deleite de principio a fin y la narradora lo hace aún mejor.
No se lo pierdan
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- Anonymous User
- 07-13-22
listened to several times good reader
I had to listen a couple times this book is very good has hidden secrets. you have to keep up with the characters attitude, timing, literally and references to illuminati. God and refusal of God. suffering of man along with all characters vices, folly, the view of a poor and rich social classes quite interesting because it was how realistic life was not very long ago. and how some of it doesn't change. faith hope and charity were actually adopted children of a pedophile and it makes references and statements of realities that time in history. maybe written a long time ago but not irreverent to now and day culture as there are still sugar daddies in society. Valerie takes the lead role very funny i burst out in laughter a couple times. a memorial book definitely makes you think about life and what you want it to be afterwards.
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Overall
- Angie
- 04-25-08
Excellent
I loved this book. it was very modern despite being an old book. It actually reminded me alot of Anna Karinena I would recommend his book to any one. The narrator was excellent too.
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- Jeremy Mumford
- 08-03-21
Tragedy of the post-Napoleonic sex addict
This novel has several different dimensions, most of which I could not fully appreciate. A big part of it is detailed social history of France in the first half of the 19th century, with constant references to social classes and occupations, houses, decorative arts, and above all economics: every transaction is accounted for down to the sou. To get the most of this you would have to know a lot more about the era than I do. Another dimension to the novel is Balzac‘s opinions about ethical, political and aesthetic questions, which I found unpersuasive and boring.
At the bottom of all this, though, is an absolutely insane melodrama of destructive lust. I don’t know if this is a spoiler, but at one point a character has four different men persuaded that the child she is carrying is theirs, apart from her syphilitic and possibly gay husband. In this world the natural lifecycle of a successful man seems to be despoiling his own family to place bonds, securities and real estate in the hands of a 19 year old actress, but even in this context, the Baron Hulot’s addiction to relationships with ever new, much younger women is completely uncontrolled and leads to the fiery destruction of his own fortune and career and the lives of most of those around him.
It’s a long novel, and for the last half of it I could barely stop listening to do anything else.
The narrator, Johanna Ward, is really excellent. She’s good with the French names and terms, and lends just the right amount of drama.
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